[NBwcs]

One of my customers has been nagging me to clean his solar panels which i turn down each time he mentions it, 
 a) because my poles not long enough and 
b) my shoulder pain wouldnt allow me these days anyway.
Hes a nice chap and has no fear of ladders so is going to do it himself dipping brush into bucket and letting rain rinse it  . Ive done my upmost to persuade him its not a good idea and to get a quote from solar cleaning "specialists"    Today i found out why he was so keen for me to do it and why hes hell bent on doing it himself if i wont. Hes been given different options but the cheapest was £300 . He lives in a 3 bed detached, and think he has about 18 panels in all, all on one side of the roof. Garden is completely flat and with the right length pole can be done from the ground. Im completely ignorant of solar panel cleaning prices but nearly fell over when he told me. For those that offer this service, does that sound right? Hes Eastern European  and i know from quoting on windows that some people out there have been  taking the urine when giving prices to foreigners , ive given quotes before and the customer (based on previous quotes) has thought the the price i gave  was per window not for all of them and im definatly not cheap for round here. I cant imagine anyone would recoop the outlay for cleaning the panels at those sort of prices. Is solar panel cleaning really that lucrative?

[dd]

On an average house for me it depends on the pitch of the roof. Anything lees than 45 degrees and I find it too difficult to be bothered with. So the price could be dependent on pitch of roof and whether some access equipment is needed (mobile scaffold perhaps)

Like you I am not really interested in doing houses anymore but offer SP cleaning on bungalows.

[Splash & dash]

We would be between £125 and 200 depending if we had to travel just to do that job or if it was in an area we are working in regularly and if it’s doable from the ground . If covered in liken then it’s £450 upwards and will need a scaffold tower

[AuRavelling79]

We would be between £125 and 200 depending if we had to travel just to do that job or if it was in an area we are working in regularly and if it’s doable from the ground . If covered in liken then it’s £450 upwards and will need a scaffold tower

How long would you expect those £125/£200 jobs to take?

[Ascjim]

We are the same. £125 min, plus travel on top.

Should take an hour to clean.

Problem is, it's just too expensive and we don't get many.

[Splash & dash]

We would be between £125 and 200 depending if we had to travel just to do that job or if it was in an area we are working in regularly and if it’s doable from the ground . If covered in liken then it’s £450 upwards and will need a scaffold tower

How long would you expect those £125/£200 jobs to take?

Actual cleaning time 30-45 muinits  plus travel time

[zesty]

Hate doing them, so it’s £150 or more.

[Smudger]

You you hate them or it’s a physical strain - no price is good enough

We are £8 a panel unless it got lichen ( all depends on access etc )

[Rob.Hall]

Normal house.
50ft gardiners s max with goose neck and s panel brush, operated from ground level.
£10 a panel + more if it has lichen.
If I have to travel as a one off job its + mileage and time.
I charge this as its a ball ache of a job.

[Rob.Hall]

Only thing to take into account is you will be stood quite a way back..

[richard connett]

Sounds like if you go in at £250 then everybody’s happy.  Even if they aren’t too bad 18 panels is not a quick job in my opinion .
I have a question though for those that do a lot of solars- us there any solution for lichen or does it have to be scraped off?

[Splash & dash]

Sounds like if you go in at £250 then everybody’s happy.  Even if they aren’t too bad 18 panels is not a quick job in my opinion .
I have a question though for those that do a lot of solars- us there any solution for lichen or does it have to be scraped off?

We scrape them then scrub with hot water , some use a biocide but this takes a while to work

[richard connett]

Thought as much! I have a customer that wants his done and they are full of lichen . To be honest I can’t be arsed , he shouldn’t have let them get that bad .

[NBwcs]

Thanks for your responses, quite an eye opener for me. I didn't really check out how covered in lichen they were as i knew i wasn't going to do them. Now if  i were 20 yrs younger........... Mind you, might have a problem explaining to customers why ive just earnt  £150 per hour cleaning their panels with a pole from the safety of the ground whilst their GP is earning approx £75 per hour..

[Soupy]

Thanks for your responses, quite an eye opener for me. I didn't really check out how covered in lichen they were as i knew i wasn't going to do them. Now if  i were 20 yrs younger........... Mind you, might have a problem explaining to customers why ive just earnt  £150 per hour cleaning their panels with a pole from the safety of the ground whilst their GP is earning approx £75 per hour..

GPs are crap at cleaning solar panels though.

[Shrek]

Thanks for your responses, quite an eye opener for me. I didn't really check out how covered in lichen they were as i knew i wasn't going to do them. Now if  i were 20 yrs younger........... Mind you, might have a problem explaining to customers why ive just earnt  £150 per hour cleaning their panels with a pole from the safety of the ground whilst their GP is earning approx £75 per hour..

You’ve gotta take into account how much our kit costs though - you’ve got to spend a couple hundred quid on extension sections just to do the job in the first place, plus running costs , fuel , tax/NI etc-  it’s not all profit!

[Smudger]

Any decent pole  that length is nearly £1k - before you start


Jnr doctors are on £14.50 - so are you reducing your hourly window rate down to a tenner?

[richard connett]

The difference between cleaning solar panels with and without lichen could be the job taking 1hr or 5 hrs . I’ve learnt to steer clear of the stuff

[Smudger]

5 hrs - wow what you using a tootbrush ?

Typical 16 panels with lichen - is 2 hrs max scraped

[dd]

5 hrs - wow what you using a tootbrush ?

Typical 16 panels with lichen - is 2 hrs max scraped

What do you scrape them with?

I do not know much about the subject, but thought you were not supposed to scrape them, should only use a flocked brush and are restricted as to what chemicals you can use to avoid damaging the surface of them.